60 albums
1981 - NWOBHM

1981 was peak-NWOBHM and while I could probably have posted about great heavy metal albums from 1980 to 1982 or ‘83 I thought I’d roll the best of them into a single post and 1981 had three of the very best.

NWOBHM montage

Saxon - Denim & Leather

OK, if pushed I’d probably pick 1980’s Wheels of Steel as my favourite Saxon album, but it’s a pretty close run thing and this album has some absolute gems - Princess of the Night, Never Surrender, And The Band Played On are close to perfect. I saw Saxon live a couple of times in 1981, most memorably at The Rainbow in Finsbury Park in December 1981, and then a few more times up until about 1983 or so… and then a 39 year gap until December 2022 at The City Hall in Newcastle - they still rock.

The opener, Princess of the Night is about a steam train, I’ve always loved the slight nerdiness of that, just imagining Biff and the lads at the end of York station with their notebooks.

Saxon at Newcastle City Hall

Girlschool - Hit and Run

Girlschool’s second album is an absolute blinder. Girlschool then had three great voices sharing the songs, Kim, Enid and Kelly all doing their turn - these days, with Kelly sadly no longer with us, and Enid sadly no longer in the band, Kim does all the singing. But the songs I like best from the past always seemed to have Enid singing, Yeah, right. I saw Girlschool probably half a dozen times from 1981 to 1983 or so… and then a 39 year gap until November 2021 at Trillians in Newcastle (and twice since) - they still rock.

Girlschool at Trillians

Raven - Rock Until You Drop

Raven were probably the most NWOBHM of all the metal bands I loved, they were a three piece which would always endear me to them. Rock Until You Drop was their first album and was recorded in Wallsend not far from where I now live. I made a pilgrimage to the site of Impulse Studios shortly after we moved here, but it had been knocked down and replaced with an ugly apartment block . As much as I loved Raven back then I can only remember seeing them once, at The Marquee, possibly in 1983… and then a 41 year gap until last week when I saw them at Trillians in Newcastle - they still rock.

This LP is loaded with great tracks, and I’d forgotten the covers of The Sweet’s Hellraiser and Action which is such fun.

Raven at Trillians

• Iron Maiden released Killers in 1981, I haven’t seem them since 1983, although I never really warmed to them after Di’anno left.
• The Tygers of Pan Tang released Spellbound in 1981, I saw them a few times in the 80s, once supporting Saxon I think… and then a 40 year gap until August 2022 at The Cluny in Newcastle - they were a wee bit disappointing.